Best Online Income for the Over 50s

The golden years and retirement are the best years of your life – with time for fun hobbies and activities. But if you face a financially unstable future then this is disheartening.

Fortunately, the online world offers exciting business opportunities for the 50-plus wanting to retire comfortably. Even non-techies can start an online business nowadays with user-friendly technology. If you’re aspiring to be an entrepreneur then this article about the Best Online Income for the Over 50s will help you get started!…

What You’ll Learn

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1. Is 50 Plus Too Old to Start a New Business?

The answer is a resounding NO! I discovered that research done by the Harvard Business Review on high-growth start-ups found that “older entrepreneurs are more likely to succeed.” Why?…

Well, people over 50 have more work experience and that’s critical to long-term growth and success. Which is fantastic news for us olderpreneurs!

Your life experience, broad knowledge, and wisdom are the perfect recipe for a successful online business. So why not capitalize on your expertise in an online business?

These Harvard researchers also found that “businesses set up by the over-50s are more likely to still be trading 5 years later than those established by younger age groups.”

We’ve got stickability!

You can cope with challenges
You’ve got time management skills
You’ve got networks,
You’ve helped friends and family with their problems

And now it’s time to empower those skills for your own successful business …

2. What’s the Best Online Income for the over 50s?

Deciding which type of online business you want can lead to indecision and inaction. So I’ve only given you two easy options, low-cost to set up, and could potentially be done together…

Affiliate Marketing is where you don’t sell products but write helpful articles with links to companies you recommend and you earn a commission.

Dropshipping is where you sell products you don’t stock and earn a margin of the profit.

For other business ideas see my other posts:

Read on for a deeper look into these models and see how you can make extra money, give up your boss, and enjoy the laptop lifestyle!…

Online Income for the Over 50s — Even Tripadvisor is an affiliate!

3. Affiliate Marketing – Create a Passive Income

Affiliate Marketing is a growing multi-billion-dollar industry with many income opportunities for the over 50s.

See the Affiliate Marketing series here.

This is a sales model where you promote a company’s products and services on your website. You’ll write about the company’s products and services and this content will contain unique tracked links…

When a customer clicks on the link and purchases the product, you’ll receive a commission from this referral.

I studied Affiliate Marketing at Wealthy Affiliate – Read my Review here

No matter which path you choose – niche blogging, YouTube, or social media – you’ll need to focus on a specific topic, known as a niche. This could be anything you’re genuinely interested in and happy to explore over time.

Whether you start a blog like this one or launch an Instagram Business Account or YouTube channel, the key is to pick a topic you enjoy and identify who you want to help or connect with (your target audience).

b. How to Choose a Niche

You’ll choose a subject (niche) that you enjoy and are knowledgeable about. Or you can choose a subject you want to learn more about…So for the over-50 age group, you’re sure to have lots of ideas…

Popular niches are Fitness and Weight Loss, Health, Pets, Make Money Online, Relationships, Beauty, Technology, and Finance.

Through keyword research, you’ll choose your niche. For example, pet care is a popular and profitable niche.

But pet care is too broad and competitive for a blog. So you’ll find a more specific niche within this subject, for example, Best Dog Breeds for Apartments.

What about dating? A sub-niche could be Dating for Men over 50.

How about health? A sub-niche of Green Tea becomes Green Tea for Weight Loss.

c. Do your Research

Find a Niche, Keywords, and Article Ideas from these Handy Sites:

Check Google Trends to see what’s trending in the topic you’re interested in, where it’s trending by country and region, and see what other topics are trending around that topic – these are all good ideas for articles.

For example, Green Tea for Weight Loss is trending in Alabama and Louisiana, and Matcha Green Tea for Weight Loss is an associated topic (Matcha is a type of tea from East Asia).

Look at Quora and see what questions are being asked about your topic and who is asking. Is there interest in the topic? If so, you can then turn these questions into articles – see below.

AlsoAsked – see what questions people are asking. You get 3 searches for free per day. (affiliate link)

Answer Socrates – another great site to find out what questions people are asking. Also 3 free searches per day.

Search Pinterest for trending subjects. Look for growing trends that will last a long time.

d. Example on Quora

I searched for ‘Green Tea for Weight Loss’ on Quora and this is the first result. See how many ideas for articles you get in that one question!

e. Time to Choose a Platform and Create Content

Whether you’re starting a blog, launching a YouTube channel, or growing a social media business, the first step is choosing your platform – and then creating content that truly helps people.

WordPress is a great option for building a niche blog. You can customize the design, optimize it for search engines, and make it reflect your personality. But here’s a tip: don’t get caught up trying to make everything perfect. The real progress comes from creating helpful, authentic content – not endlessly tweaking your layout.

Top Tip: No matter the platform, your content shouldn’t be pushy or salesy. Instead, focus on solving real problems for your audience.

Think about the kinds of questions you’ve asked Google, Bing or AI:

“How to get rid of belly fat?”
“How much protein do I need each day?”
“What’s a popular comedy on Netflix?”

Your job is to answer questions like these with clear, useful guidance. That’s how you become the trusted go-to person in your niche.

If blogging isn’t your thing, you can build a successful affiliate business on platforms like YouTube, TikTok, Pinterest or Instagram. These are great options if you enjoy creating videos or sharing visual content.

Choose just one or two platforms to focus on, and share your content across them to reach more people.

Choose a niche you care about and consistently create helpful, engaging posts or videos that solve problems for your audience. Over time, you’ll build trust – and that’s what leads to affiliate income.

f. Solving Problems and Helping

So the idea for Affiliate Marketing is that you work out your audience’s problems. You then solve their problems in your content.

Within the content, you’ll also link to products and services that align with the subject. These links have your special affiliate code and when your audience clicks and buys – you earn…Ka-ching!

Affiliate marketing is an excellent opportunity if you truly believe in the value of the product you’re selling. Because many times, you can make money off of something you would probably recommend anyway.
Neil Patel, Founder of Neil Patel Digital

g. Making Money!

Of course, like any business, it’s not a get-rich-quick scheme. You’ll put time and effort into building your content.

Each article, reel, video, post creates more links…which creates more clicks…which creates more sales…and so on. Over time you’ll gain dedicated readers and followers. You also see money (which is exciting) but not immediately. Give it time.

h. How do I Promote my Content for Free?

Depending on what platform you choose you can promote your content on social media channels, Pinterest, YouTube, TikTok, Quora, and Reddit.

Start building an email list – this is gold! And one of the most powerful tools for affiliate marketers – your subscribers are people who already want to hear from you. You can share new blog posts, videos, links to your social media, and even links to your affiliate offers.

Promotion can take a lot of time though so choose two and focus on these.

See the Social Media Marketing Series and the Email Marketing Series.

Pros of Affiliate Marketing as an Online Income for the Over 50s

Easy to set up with minimal start-up costs
Low risk with few running costs
You’ll capitalize on your knowledge, time management, and business skills
You can turn a passion into a business
Helping people is fun and rewarding
You’ll continue to earn money from links you shared months or even years before
No expertise is needed – you’ll learn along the way
Work when you want – where you want

Cons of Affiliate Marketing

It takes time to build your online business and often people give up too early
Commissions can be low, for example in travel accommodation, so choose programs wisely
Competition is fierce so choose a sub-niche that has less competition
Difficult to predict how much money you’ll make initially

With Affiliate Marketing you can earn money while you sleep.
Neil Patel describes this as “Make $$$ while you ZZZ”!

What’s the Key Takeaway with this Online Income for the Over 50s?

Affiliate Marketing is an online business with plenty of rewards once you’ve done the initial hard work. When you build up a solid foundation you can hire writers and creators to help you maintain your content creation schedules.

See More Affiliate Marketing Advice

4. Dropshipping – Selling Made Easy

Dropshipping - over 50 online business - laptop lifestyle

Dropshipping is an order fulfillment method where your online business sells products that you don’t keep in stock.

So, when a customer buys a product from you, you then purchase this product directly from the dropshipper. They will be a manufacturer, retailer, or wholesaler and they ship the products directly to the customer.

The product can be branded to appear to come directly from you. So although you sell the products you don’t handle them.

See the Dropshipping Series here.

a. What Do I Need to Do to Start Dropshipping?

You’ll choose the type of products you’d like to sell, where you’re going to sell, and your selling channels.

Do I need a website for dropshipping? Not necessarily! You can start on platforms like Facebook, Instagram, or even eBay without a website. But having your own site can help build trust, give you more control, and make it easier to grow your brand over time.

Dropshipping Channels: You’ll find individual companies or dropshipping channels. These channels handle thousands of wholesalers and manufacturers all in one place, so you have a huge range of products to choose from.

Some channels include: SaleHoo, AlixExpress, Spocket, Modalyst, Doba, Worldwide Brands, DHGate, and Wholesale2B

SaleHoo is a popular Dropshipping Channel – Online Income for the Over 50s

b. How to find Perfect Dropshipping Products:

Check on Amazon, Google Trends, Etsy, and Pinterest for trending and popular products. Also, check out your potential competition and their prices. Google ”what product is trending right now?”

What about niche products, e.g. organic, fair trade? Also, look for regional products that are likely to be less competitive.

Shopify is a popular website creation tool that offers 24/7 help, and useful articles on selling, promotion, and SEO. Here are their current top products:

Shirts
Skin care
Makeup
Vitamins and supplements
Pants
Dresses
Motor vehicle parts
Activewear
Coats and jackets
Sneakers and boots
Arts and crafting materials
Shampoo and soap
Underwear
Bedding
Cycling
Hats and accessories
Alcoholic beverages
Kitchen appliances
Perfume and cologne

Their advice for success in dropshipping (and they should know!) is that you need trending products, marketing skills and the determination to succeed.

d. Top Tips

Think about how the product will ship, for example, big heavy items will cost a lot to ship, and the postage cost may discourage purchasers.
Also selling clothes or shoes can result in returns, due to size issues, so you’ll end up with more work dealing with these returns.

I’ve met a Shopify customer service rep and he said it’s easy setting up a website with wonderful products. But if you don’t promote your website then no one knows about you, you don’t have a business…and you don’t make money.

So that Shopify’s tip about marketing skills is important. At the beginning, promotion is 95% of the work!

e. How can I Promote my Website?

My advice for promotion are the same as for affiliate marketing: social media, Pinterest, YouTube, and Forums like Quora, and Reddit. Choose 2 and focus on them. Udemy offers lots of easy marketing courses to level up your knowledge.

Pros of Dropshipping

Minimal start-up costs

Low risk with few running costs

You can dropship on Amazon so long as you follow their policies

Amazon also has a program called Amazon FBA – Fulfillment by Amazon (see this series)

You can sell through your blog or website, YouTube, Instagram, Facebook, and other channels

You can be anywhere in the world and sell to any geographic location – so long as the dropshippers can ship to that location

You can start small and keep it that way, or scale up to a big business. Since you don’t need to store and manage stock, package the products or ship them.

Cons of Dropshipping (with Solutions)

a. Stock Issues

The dropshipper may run out of a product after you’ve sold the item which is hugely disappointing for your (now unhappy) customer and damages your brand.

✅ Use dropshipping suppliers with real-time inventory tracking and alerts.

b. High Competition

Since dropshipping is so easy to start it’s also very competitive. You’re potentially selling products that lots of other people are selling too – which can create saturation.

✅ Focus on niche products and build a strong brand with unique value.

c. Returns & Trust

If the product is damaged or doesn’t turn up at the customer’s address – do you trust the dropshipper with the returns process?

✅ Vet suppliers thoroughly – check reviews and test their return process yourself.

d. Variable Shipping Times

Shipping times can vary widely amongst the dropshippers, especially international shipping times.

✅ Choose suppliers with fast, reliable shipping options and clear delivery estimates.

e. Customer Service Concerns

Howl do they help when things go pear-shaped?

✅ Test their support channels before partnering and have backup communication plans.

5. Video: Complete Guide to Dropshipping on Shopify

What’s the Key Takeaway?

Dropshipping is a relatively easy way for you to sell products without the headache of handling stock. It’s still hands-on making sure everything runs smoothly but it’s easy to upscale the whole operation and you can add and delete products as the market changes.

Wrapping Up

Hi Friends, I hope I answered your question about the Best Online Income for Over 50s and how you can make money in your 50s and older.

Quite a bit of information to digest but these two business models offer a chance to harness your skills and experience and start your own business, escape the corporate world, and find financial independence.

Next Steps: See the Affiliate Marketing Series and the E-commerce and Products Series